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Our caravan is not yet 2 years old and we had to have the  power/booster box for the status ariel replaced, and now having been away over easter we find it doesn't work again, so it has to be replaced one more.

 Has anyone else had a problem with theirs? Is there a common fault with them that we haven't heard about? could we be using it wrong? (though there is not really much to use! we do leave it switched on all the time.)

Any help would be appreciated.

Hi Janx.,

Is it the fixed arial or the one you wiggle round and push up with the pole (very technical)

The only reason I ask is mum and dad have just had the fixed one replaced on there coachman amara as it was leaking and they had to have the roof replaced inside the van due to damp caused

The dealer fitted them a new arial last week (finally) and I had a text the other night to say they we're away and the arial wasn't working with the booster, the only way they can get a picture is disconnecting the booster and the signal is poor but there is a picture,

Maybe status are having a faulty batch and you and my parents may have one???

Good luck

 I have a status the same as you and depending on where you are the picture is often better without the booster funnily enough it gives perfect Freeview reception at

the Edinburgh CC site.

Boosters are funny things. If you are staying in an area where the signal is good and strong and you turn the booster on it will boost the signal level up even further but too much, the signal is now over boosted and in the realms of distortion, a bit like the volume on a hi-fi. If you were to wind the volume up to full blast then not every word would be heard from the singer because it would be over boosted and distorted. Some cheap boosters are also bad for the signals as they boost the good clean tv signal but also boost the noise pollution (the bad signal). Some boosters have a gain/boost control on them so that you can adjust the amount of signal gain, these are a good idea.

It is a good idea to check the coax connectors to make sure they are on properly and also check the connectors/cable for dampness/moisture as moisture in the cable is not a good sign and this can 'take out' the booster. Another way to tell if there is moisture in the cable is to check the coax plugs to see if there is any sign of rust which would obviously indicate moisture in the cable. Usually a blown booster will have the oposite effect on the signal, it will reduce the strength of the original signal going in to it. Another tell tale sign that the booster has blown is when there are bands/lines visible on the tv screen (amp lines). Do also make sure the cable from the aerial and the cable to the tv is plugged in to the correct in/out ports on the amp!

Quote: Originally posted by bev+jon on 16/4/2009

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we find our booster is rubbish basically, and the status aerial aint much better. if we are on a site with no external booster system we tend to use our old mast type aerial, way better than the status.

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Depends which Status you have got. If it is the flying saucer type then you might as well bin it. If it is the 530 then they are excellent.

Quote: Originally posted by Janx on 14/4/2009

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Our caravan is not yet 2 years old and we had to have the  power/booster box for the status ariel replaced, and now having been away over easter we find it doesn't work again, so it has to be replaced one more.

 Has anyone else had a problem with theirs? Is there a common fault with them that we haven't heard about? could we be using it wrong? (though there is not really much to use! we do leave it switched on all the time.)

Any help would be appreciated.

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Thanks for all your replys, sorry for late response, been away.

Ours is the new shape one and we do find it normally very good, with or without booster.

It is definately a fault in the box where the coax goes in because there was no signal at all, where usually as I say it's no problem.

Having got in touch with dealer they said it is quite a common thing for them to go, but we think twice in less than two years is too common. they have given us a new one to fit ourselves to save taking van in.

Just can't understand what there is to go wrong with them, maybe when we fit it we may find something a miss where they fitted the old one.

Definately no damp in cable, as suggested by someone.